“Jasmine in a dress, crystal in paper,” quotes the Granada poet Federico García Lorca in his work
Bodas de sangre
.
Climbing jasmines encompass in themselves much of the Andalusian soul and the lands where it blooms, although, originally, they come from other distant territories, from China and its surroundings.
These plants are so rooted in Spain that even one of them is called Spanish jasmine.
Jasmines are from the olive family (Oleaceae or oleaceae).
In fact, its fruits are slightly reminiscent of small black olives.
Several of the species of this
Jasminum
genus are shrubs, but those most cultivated in Spain are climbers.
Among the first shrub species, we should highlight the winter or San José jasmine (
Jasminum nudiflorum
), premature in its winter flowering, which is why it receives its popular name.
Its delicate yellow flower, lacking in aroma, can be very abundant, which is why it grew in countless ancient gardens.
Today it is no longer as planted as in the past;
Fashions also affect plants.
Currently, the yellow flowers of this winter jasmine are replaced by others of the same color of the ubiquitous yellow jasmine (
Jasminum mesnyi
), very common in public gardening.
This species, which blooms in these late winter days, does not have the intoxicating perfume that other of its relatives are famous for, but it is perfect for hanging from the top of a wall, since it creates a waterfall effect that makes it very esthetic.
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Despite the beauty of these two species of jasmine with yellow flowers, those that really get the fame in Spain are three species with white flowers: the Chinese jasmine (
Jasminum polyanthum
), the Spanish jasmine or royal jasmine (
Jasminum grandiflorum
) and the less cultivated common jasmine or white jasmine (
Jasminum officinale
).
All of them share one of the characteristics that is most valued in this genre: the fragrance of their flowers.
This is so powerful that it is felt in many meters around, especially on warm summer days.
Its essence has participated in perfumes since ancient times, which try to capture part of this olfactory magic.
Likewise, the three species easily exceed five or six meters in height when grown in open ground.
They usually have pentamerous flowers, with five petals, but the young King Charles III holds one with six petals in his hand in Jean Ranc's famous painting,
Charles III, a Child, in his Cabinet
(around 1724), as a symbol of the extraordinary and unusual.
The Chinese jasmine has a single, very abundant flowering per year. Susan Gary (Getty Images)
Chinese jasmine is also called pink jasmine in other languages, since its flowers are dyed this tone, mainly when they are closed.
Originally from the southwest of the Asian country, it has a marked difference with the other two species mentioned above: when it blooms, it does so in a single overwhelming burst.
It is then when the plant is completely covered with flowers, around the month of May, grouped in bouquets of up to forty of them.
Such is its profusion that it is difficult to appreciate the leaves, buried by hundreds of their white petals.
Of course, to see this show again we will have to wait until next year.
Of these three climbing species with white flowers, this is, without a doubt, the least rustic, the least resistant to cold, so it is most suitable for those warm areas of the country.
If you want to try growing it, you should always try to grow it at the foot of a wall facing south or west, which stops the cold winds.
But the most cultivated white-flowered jasmine is, without a doubt, the Spanish jasmine, which can also be referred to as large-flowered jasmine, as evidenced by its specific epithet of
grandiflorum
.
In it, flowering is spread over months and months;
once it begins with it, it does not stop spreading its whiteness among its branches.
This plant, tireless, constant, can even flower during the 12 months of the year in favorable climates.
Many of its flowers add light pink tones to its structure, another incentive to its beauty.
Its close relative, the common jasmine, has somewhat smaller flowers and usually lacking this pink tint.
The genetics of this species are so close to that of the Spanish jasmine that the latter has traditionally been considered a subspecies of the common jasmine.
Both are quite resistant to cold, and, once established in place, can survive temperatures of 10 degrees below zero, as long as they are not sustained over time.
If they freeze completely, they can also sprout from the roots, if the damage caused by the winter has not been severe.
The compound leaves of jasmines are very characteristic.Kumaravel (Getty Images)
Jasmines are very appropriate for growing in a pot on the terrace.
And, although they can overcome periods of drought, they like a good level of humidity in the substrate, which allows them to develop good anatomy and, consequently, greater flowering.
Consistency in the application of an organic fertilizer will also ensure abundant flowering.
When it comes to pruning, Chinese jasmine benefits from light trimming after flowering, which also removes wilted flower heads.
For Spanish or common jasmine, pruning can be applied to keep them at a size consistent with the space in which they are, to prevent them from getting out of hand.
Thus, the branches that have flowered should be cut back, almost to the level of the most powerful ones from which they emerge.
This will allow it, with young growth, to load with flowers at the tips of the new spring branches.
Of course, as long as at least two or three hours of direct sun is guaranteed to the plant, which, like its cousin the olive tree, enjoys intense sunshine.
In the
Agricultural and Forestry Flora of al-Andalus
, published by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food in 2021, the etymology of the word jasmine is cited, which comes from the term of Persian origin
yāsamīn
, and which is also applied to privet (
Ligustrum vulgare
).
It seems that the meaning of
yāsamīn
is “gift from God.”
Whether this is the case or not, enjoying a jasmine nearby is like having a piece of heaven, with its white stars.